For me...the question is not wether Ben is good or not...The question is "will he fit in with the players we have?" Will he become the 2009 version of Billups and show up to set the tone for the whole team? or will he show up like AI and ........................

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You have to consider the age. Maybe that was the year where AI was just done. Ben is 8 years younger so he has a way to go yet.

I still do think that the theory of getting someone who can take over a game and spark the offense is sound and what we need.

Granted I don't think he's that good, and I don't think he's as good as his contract, but I'd rather have him than many other SG's in the league. And I'm sick of Rip.

I don't really see Ben getting much better though. I think he is who he's gonna be. I'm just liking this move a little bit yes because Joe has absolutely no idea what he's gonna do with Rip. We're paying a guy 58 million bucks over 5 years and there is no plan in place to fetch something for Rip. He's just going to... what, cross his fingers and hopefully something good comes of it down the line? What if nothing ever does?

Oh I know. Prince knows how to (usually) beat up on the weaker teams in round one.

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You call it beating up on the weaker teams, I call it winning. Year before last Prince had an excellent series against the Magic and Rashard that allowed them to advance. He has played well in the playoffs against Tracy McGrady, Rashard Lewis, and Kobe Bryant. Weak... I know, We should trade him for that guy who can stop LeBron and Pierce. You know that guy... what's his name again? That guy who shuts down LeBron James and Paul Pierce?

You call it beating up on the weaker teams, I call it winning. Year before last Prince had an excellent series against the Magic and Rashard that allowed them to advance. He has played well in the playoffs against Tracy McGrady, Rashard Lewis, and Kobe Bryant. Weak... I know, We should trade him for that guy who can stop LeBron and Pierce. You know that guy... what's his name again? That guy who shuts down LeBron James and Paul Pierce?

You call it beating up on the weaker teams, I call it winning. Year before last Prince had an excellent series against the Magic and Rashard that allowed them to advance. He has played well in the playoffs against Tracy McGrady, Rashard Lewis, and Kobe Bryant. Weak... I know, We should trade him for that guy who can stop LeBron and Pierce. You know that guy... what's his name again? That guy who shuts down LeBron James and Paul Pierce?

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It's not about "stopping" anybody. That takes great team defense, but I would think a supposed All NBA defender would do a bit better than he did... LeBron/Wade/Pierce's stats actually improved against Prince in the ECF's from their regular season numbers.

But anyway, that's not really my beef with him. It's about producing at least some when the chips are down, holding your own at least... NOT shooting sub 35% in the biggest games of the year, three years in a row.

Although Gordon was a dynamic one-on-one player for the Bulls, he rarely created opportunities for anyone else on the court. That left virtually all of the playmaking duties to Rose. If ever there's a young point guard who could handle that burden, it's Rose, but Gordon's tunnel vision made life more difficult than it needed to be for the rookie. Rose has the potential to be a very good off-the-ball player. Unfortunately, Gordon's tendencies didn't allow those skills to flourish for Rose. A shooting guard with a greater capacity to facilitate will help Rose develop that part of his game.

Gordon, to put it kindly, was a below-average defender at the two for Chicago. And Rose, though his defense will almost certain improve with age, was no great shakes on the other side of the ball either. Some of Gordon's deficiencies can be chalked up to inattentiveness, but he's also quite small for a shooting guard. Either way, Vinny Del Negro didn't have the comfort to cross-match his smalls, which meant that Rose spent almost all of his time guarding the ball. A more capable defender at the two would afford Rose a breather on defense.

It's not about "stopping" anybody. That takes great team defense, but I would think a supposed All NBA defender would do a bit better than he did... LeBron/Wade/Pierce's stats actually improved against Prince in the ECF's from their regular season numbers.

But anyway, that's not really my beef with him. It's about producing at least some when the chips are down, holding your own at least... NOT shooting sub 35% in the biggest games of the year, three years in a row.

It's not about "stopping" anybody. That takes great team defense, but I would think a supposed All NBA defender would do a bit better than he did... LeBron/Wade/Pierce's stats actually improved against Prince in the ECF's from their regular season numbers.

But anyway, that's not really my beef with him. It's about producing at least some when the chips are down, holding your own at least... NOT shooting sub 35% in the biggest games of the year, three years in a row.

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I hear ya. Who would you suggest for equal value that will step up when the chips are down, in the biggest games of the year against Lebon/Wade/Pierce?